About this Research Topic
The restoration of terrestrial ecosystems is considered today as one of the most promising mechanisms to mitigate climate change, limit desertification, protect endangered species, enable socio-economic benefits, reach food security, and promote a variety of ecosystem services. The three international conventions (UNFCCC, UNCCD, and CBD), and many international organizations therefore support ecosystem and landscape restoration initiatives, but, as it has been pointed out in recent scientific debates, restoration is not only about planting trees; it is about restoring depleted ecosystems and landscapes, considering all the biophysical (vegetation, soil, water management) and socioeconomic (local livelihood and global issues) aspects associated with it. To achieve landscape restoration, it is therefore necessary to implement holistic methodologies on the ground that target multiple benefits while accounting for both the local and the global socio-ecological context.
While the international agenda and large-scale programs are working to implement restoration activities on the ground, we still lack basic understanding and knowledge on the best practices to apply in the various socio-ecological landscapes of our planet. We therefore urgently need to gather existing knowledge from the ground in order to identify the best practices, but also the main gaps in restoration ecology. Without the development of a strong scientific and experimental based approach, there is a high chance that existing restoration programs will fail to produce the multiple environmental and socio-economic benefits that are expected.
This Research Topic aims to gather experience, knowledge, and perspectives from scientists having “boots on the ground” experience or who are involved in restoration-related projects. We aim to answer the following specific questions:
• What are the methodologies to restore a natural ecosystem? How do they compare?
• How do natural regeneration yields compare with natural assisted restoration or monospecific plantations?
• What are the key indicators of a successfully restored ecosystem?
• How can we monitor the restoration of a given ecosystem?
• What is the carbon budget of a restored ecosystem (including soil and living biomass)?
• What are the early signals of ecosystem restoration?
• What are the lessons learned from past experiences?
This call concerns forest ecologists, grassland ecologists, soil ecologists, silviculture and forest management researchers, geographers, agronomists, and agroecologists developing research on ecosystem restoration. The Research Topic will attribute a particular interest to experimental work in developing countries but is also open to a broader view on the topic.
We are therefore interested in Original Research and Method articles, but also in Opinion and Perspective papers that could significantly contribute to the field.
While the international agenda and large-scale programs are working to implement restoration activities on the ground, we still lack basic understanding and knowledge on the best practices to apply in the various socio-ecological landscapes of our planet. We therefore urgently need to gather existing knowledge from the ground in order to identify the best practices, but also the main gaps in restoration ecology. Without the development of a strong scientific and experimental based approach, there is a high chance that existing restoration programs will fail to produce the multiple environmental and socio-economic benefits that are expected.
This Research Topic aims to gather experience, knowledge, and perspectives from scientists having “boots on the ground” experience or who are involved in restoration-related projects. We aim to answer the following specific questions:
• What are the methodologies to restore a natural ecosystem? How do they compare?
• How do natural regeneration yields compare with natural assisted restoration or monospecific plantations?
• What are the key indicators of a successfully restored ecosystem?
• How can we monitor the restoration of a given ecosystem?
• What is the carbon budget of a restored ecosystem (including soil and living biomass)?
• What are the early signals of ecosystem restoration?
• What are the lessons learned from past experiences?
This call concerns forest ecologists, grassland ecologists, soil ecologists, silviculture and forest management researchers, geographers, agronomists, and agroecologists developing research on ecosystem restoration. The Research Topic will attribute a particular interest to experimental work in developing countries but is also open to a broader view on the topic.
We are therefore interested in Original Research and Method articles, but also in Opinion and Perspective papers that could significantly contribute to the field.
Keywords: Restoration, nature based solutions, climate change, biodiversity, forest landscape restoration, grassland, soil
Important Note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.
